Giorgetto Giugiaro is most famous in the world of watchmaking for his innovative 7A28-7000 "Ripley" chronograph, of Alien's fame. What you may not know is that his design prowess extends far beyond watches; from cars, to cameras, church organs and even a new shape of pasta. Giugiaro was simply a natural born designer of... things. And for anyone who thinks they aren't familiar with his work, one of the most iconic and recognisable cars of all time was his design - the DeLorean!
One of Giugiaro's lesser-known creations is the 7A28-5000 "Steering Wheel". It uses the same analogue display quartz movement (the first in the world, I should add) as its more famous 7A28-7000 brother, but was later brought to the market and greeted with less fanfare. As a result, tracking down a good condition version of this watch is genuinely very difficult.
Features:
Year Produced: April 1986
The World’s First. The 7A28 movement was the first ever analogue display quartz chronograph movement. Not only did Seiko manage to keep things looking like a traditional automatic movement from the outside, the inside of the 7A28 featured 15 jewels, contained no plastic parts, and can be regulated, and repaired, so older models can be kept in service. With this, the movement is capable of 10 seconds per month accuracy.
The Chronograph. 1/20th of a second on the 12 o’clock subdial, 60 second counter at 3 o’clock and a 30-minute counter at 6 o’clock.
Movement. Seiko 7A28 Quartz
The Wheel. 43mm wide, and 42mm lug to lug, featuring the original “steering wheel” design (in good condition)
Condition: Great condition, but missing the original strap. Due to the type of plastic used at the time, all of the original straps are absolutely unwearable now as they become too dry and brittle. The case, crystal and case back are in near perfect condition. There in some very light paint loss around the top and bottom of the case (where it meets the strap), most of the watch is without fault.
Scope: No box or papers. Not the original strap.
Movement: Quartz, 132,768 Hz, 2 years of battery life
Dimensions:
- Lug to Lug: 42.5mm
- Case Width: 43.5mm
- Case Thickness: 12.0mm (including the raised "steering wheel" element)
- Strap Width: 12.0mm
Delivered in a beautiful custom stamped (Provenance Watches) leather travel case. Makes for a perfect gift.
